Next of Kin (and relationship): Mr. Peter B. Kamedish (father)
Date of enlistment: June 21, 1940
City and province of enlistment: Winnipeg, Manitoba
Personal Life
John Benjamin Kamedish was an ordinary teenage boy who tried to make a difference in defending his country. He was born on December 18th, 1918 to Peter and Louisa Kamedish both born in Minnesota, USA (Official Registration of Death). He grew up on 114 Morley Ave, playing hockey, baseball, basketball and an occasional golf match. He worked as a locomotive engineer and his other hobbies were scrap work and machine shop work (Interview Report). John went to St. Ignatius Elementary school and eventually made it into St. Paul`s College in September of 1933(). John took religion, composition, literature, algebra, geometry, biology, history, Latin, French, and German (School Records). He failed his grade 10 year and had to take the supplemental exam in order to pass the grade. He left St. Paul`s College in June 1935 to join the Royal Canadian Air Force (School Records).
When John joined the RCAF in June 1935, was fairly normal looking teenager. John was 6`0 164lbs (Interview Report), with grey eyes and light brown hair (Certificate of Medial Examination). He was Roman Catholic and was single when he decided to join the Air Force. () He was described as having a confident, mature, and pleasant personality. His appearance was rugged, ordinary, and clean. He was dressed confident, clean and neat. His intelligence was deliberate and accurate. These qualities saw him fit to join the Air Force. (Interview Report) He was also very ambitious. When asked to describe what would qualify him to be in the RCAF, he said that he collected plane photos and built airplane models. He was also quoted as saying, “I have been interested in the Aeronautical field and would therefore welcome any opportunity to be admitted.” (Interview) He was also seen fit by his peers to get into the R.C.A.F. because he was “keen on entering service” (Interview Report). On January 20, 1941, he recieved the Air Gunner Badge for his efforts in training.
Air Gunner Badge
Training
Once in accepted into the air force at the age of 21 (Interview Report) in June 1935 (school records), he was shipped off to Abingdon Berkshire to begin training (Grave Reference Signal No. C7/99). All members had to undergo vigorous training with months of specialized schooling in order to join the R.C.A.F. (The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan). John was training to be a Wireless Operator (Interview Report). Training was very hazardous. There was a fatal crash every 22,388 hours of flying time (The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan).
A Wireless Air Gunner was a glorified job for any member of the R.C.A.F. All the young men dreamed about shooting down an enemy plane and receiving a hero’s reputation. To start their training, recruits would go to Pre Air Crew educational attachment to brush up on their high school education at a university in the area. Once finished that, they were sent to a Bombing and Gunnery School, where they learned the basics about flying and air gunnery-ships. After that they were sent to do hands on training. First, the recruits would practice getting used to the turrets by a turret on the ground. The recruits would maneuver the turret and follow targets to get a feel of aiming the guns. The next stage in training, recruits would go to the air and they would learn to fire the turrets in the air. They worked in tight mid-upper turrets and they would learn to fire at other planes in the sky and targets on the ground. They also learned how to clean their guns in mid air in order to become a more efficient gunner. During these training sessions, pilots would spend hours taking recruits up in the sky to practice their skills. These pilots were often very bitter about this because they would rather be in battle than training recruits. To add insult to injury, recruits would often throw up in the plane do to the dizziness of trying to concentrate in the fast moving aircraft. (Robert Anthony John Peter (Tony) Pitt) Unfortunately, it was during one of these mid-air training sessions that would lead to disaster for Kamedish.
Death
In the 5 years of the training operation, 856 trainees died during plane crashes (The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan). Unfortunately, John was one of the unlucky ones who died in training. John died on July 28, 1941 in a flying accident (Grave Reference Signal No. C7/99) with Sgt. Chapman as the pilot of aircraft #T4323 when the plane accident occurred. The plane crash was believed to be an accident and no one’s fault (Report on Accidental or Self-Inflicted Injuries), so it was likely a malfunction of the aircraft that lead to the fatal crash. Kamedish suffered multiple injuries in the crash and died on impact (Report on Accidental or Self-Inflicted Injuries). The horror of the final thoughts of John was probably terrifying. John felt helpless feeling of free falling through the sky and spinning uncontrollably, and then the final moment when you see the ground right before you.
John felt no pain in his death. He died a very noble death in trying to protect the freedom of his country. He sacrificed his well-being and eventually his life to do his part in making sure his country and his people were safe from the rising Nazi power. Lest we forget.
Things Happening on July 28, 1941
On the days leading up to that fateful day, many events were taking place. The Japanese launched an invasion on Indo – China. As a response, the Indies government cut off the agreement to send 1.8 million tons of oil to Japan. Also, Britain urged Iran to expel all German “tourists” due to the fear of anti-British propaganda being spread within Iran from these Germans. It was also revealed that the Nazis had lost 600000 men in a campaign against the Russians. (Winnipeg Tribune)
Military Service Record
Age (at death): 22 years, 7 months, 10 days
Force: Air
Unit: Wireless Operator Air Gunner
Service Number: R59288
Honours and Awards: Air Gunner Badge, January 20, 1941
Next of Kin (and relationship): Mr. Peter B. Kamedish (father)
Date of Death: July 28, 1941
Country of Burial: England
Cemetery: Brookwood MIlitary Cemetary
Grave Reference: 30. H. 5
Book of Remembrance: Commemorated on Page 34 of the Second World War Book of Remembrance
Canada. Manitoba. Official Registration of Death. N.p.: n.p., 1941. Print. This
registration tells me when he died and how old he was when he passed away.
Canada. R.C.A.F. Attestation Paper. N.p.: n.p., 1940. Print. This paper gives me
a lot of information on his personal life such as the schools he went to,
mother and fater, hobbies, and what qualifies him to be in the airforce.
Canadian Government. "The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan." CanadaRemembers. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2012. <http://www.veterans.gc.ca/ pdf/publications/canada-remembers/SWW_Britcom_e.pdf>. This website gives me information on what John Kamedish must have gone through in his training and how many people were in his shoes.
Government of Canada. "Robert Anthony John Peter (Tony) Pitt ." Veterans Affairs
Canada. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2012. <http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/
collections/hrp/hrp_detail/1353#tran>. Describes what Kamedish had to go
through in his training.
Hillmar, Norman, and F.J. Hatch. "British Commonwealth Air Training Plan." The Canadian Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2012. <http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/ british-commonwealth-air-training-plan>. Gives me a prespective on what was going on with regards to what Kamedish was going into and what was going on in regards to the R.C.A.F.
R.C.A.F. Officer. "R.C.A.F. Special Reserve Interview Report." Letter. 5 July 1940. MS. This interview is good for giving me information on what kind of a person Kamedish was.
Schwartz, Bob. "Royal Canadian Air Force - Wireless Operator Air Gunner ." Wing 2 Wing. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2012. <http://www.ww2wings.com/
wings/canada/canadawag.shtml>. There are pictures of badges that
Kamedish got for becoming an air gunner for the R.C.A.F.
Stone, A. C. "Certificate of Medical Examination Kamedish." Letter. 12 Apr. 1940. MS. This certificate tells me his appearance and build of Kamedish and will help me bring his who he was to life.
Wallis, J. "Report on accidental or self-inflicted injuries or immediate death
therefrom." Letter. 9 May 1941. MS. Tells me the details on the accident
Table of Contents
Sgt. Air Gunner
R59288.
Royal Canadian Air Force
Service Personnel Information
Personal Life
John Benjamin Kamedish was an ordinary teenage boy who tried to make a difference in defending his country. He was born on December 18th, 1918 to Peter and Louisa Kamedish both born in Minnesota, USA (Official Registration of Death). He grew up on 114 Morley Ave, playing hockey, baseball, basketball and an occasional golf match. He worked as a locomotive engineer and his other hobbies were scrap work and machine shop work (Interview Report). John went to St. Ignatius Elementary school and eventually made it into St. Paul`s College in September of 1933(). John took religion, composition, literature, algebra, geometry, biology, history, Latin, French, and German (School Records). He failed his grade 10 year and had to take the supplemental exam in order to pass the grade. He left St. Paul`s College in June 1935 to join the Royal Canadian Air Force (School Records).
When John joined the RCAF in June 1935, was fairly normal looking teenager. John was 6`0 164lbs (Interview Report), with grey eyes and light brown hair (Certificate of Medial Examination). He was Roman Catholic and was single when he decided to join the Air Force. () He was described as having a confident, mature, and pleasant personality. His appearance was rugged, ordinary, and clean. He was dressed confident, clean and neat. His intelligence was deliberate and accurate. These qualities saw him fit to join the Air Force. (Interview Report) He was also very ambitious. When asked to describe what would qualify him to be in the RCAF, he said that he collected plane photos and built airplane models. He was also quoted as saying, “I have been interested in the Aeronautical field and would therefore welcome any opportunity to be admitted.” (Interview) He was also seen fit by his peers to get into the R.C.A.F. because he was “keen on entering service” (Interview Report). On January 20, 1941, he recieved the Air Gunner Badge for his efforts in training.
Air Gunner Badge
Training
Once in accepted into the air force at the age of 21 (Interview Report) in June 1935 (school records), he was shipped off to Abingdon Berkshire to begin training (Grave Reference Signal No. C7/99). All members had to undergo vigorous training with months of specialized schooling in order to join the R.C.A.F. (The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan). John was training to be a Wireless Operator (Interview Report). Training was very hazardous. There was a fatal crash every 22,388 hours of flying time (The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan).
A Wireless Air Gunner was a glorified job for any member of the R.C.A.F. All the young men dreamed about shooting down an enemy plane and receiving a hero’s reputation. To start their training, recruits would go to Pre Air Crew educational attachment to brush up on their high school education at a university in the area. Once finished that, they were sent to a Bombing and Gunnery School, where they learned the basics about flying and air gunnery-ships. After that they were sent to do hands on training. First, the recruits would practice getting used to the turrets by a turret on the ground. The recruits would maneuver the turret and follow targets to get a feel of aiming the guns. The next stage in training, recruits would go to the air and they would learn to fire the turrets in the air. They worked in tight mid-upper turrets and they would learn to fire at other planes in the sky and targets on the ground. They also learned how to clean their guns in mid air in order to become a more efficient gunner. During these training sessions, pilots would spend hours taking recruits up in the sky to practice their skills. These pilots were often very bitter about this because they would rather be in battle than training recruits. To add insult to injury, recruits would often throw up in the plane do to the dizziness of trying to concentrate in the fast moving aircraft. (Robert Anthony John Peter (Tony) Pitt) Unfortunately, it was during one of these mid-air training sessions that would lead to disaster for Kamedish.
Death
In the 5 years of the training operation, 856 trainees died during plane crashes (The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan). Unfortunately, John was one of the unlucky ones who died in training. John died on July 28, 1941 in a flying accident (Grave Reference Signal No. C7/99) with Sgt. Chapman as the pilot of aircraft #T4323 when the plane accident occurred. The plane crash was believed to be an accident and no one’s fault (Report on Accidental or Self-Inflicted Injuries), so it was likely a malfunction of the aircraft that lead to the fatal crash. Kamedish suffered multiple injuries in the crash and died on impact (Report on Accidental or Self-Inflicted Injuries). The horror of the final thoughts of John was probably terrifying. John felt helpless feeling of free falling through the sky and spinning uncontrollably, and then the final moment when you see the ground right before you.
John felt no pain in his death. He died a very noble death in trying to protect the freedom of his country. He sacrificed his well-being and eventually his life to do his part in making sure his country and his people were safe from the rising Nazi power. Lest we forget.
Things Happening on July 28, 1941
On the days leading up to that fateful day, many events were taking place. The Japanese launched an invasion on Indo – China. As a response, the Indies government cut off the agreement to send 1.8 million tons of oil to Japan. Also, Britain urged Iran to expel all German “tourists” due to the fear of anti-British propaganda being spread within Iran from these Germans. It was also revealed that the Nazis had lost 600000 men in a campaign against the Russians. (Winnipeg Tribune)
Military Service Record
Grave Reference
Additional information/links
http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/collections/hrp/hrp_detail/1353#tran - find out more about what it was like for recruits trying to become an air gunner.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeO_Qw4AesQ&safety_mode=true&persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active - The Rear Gunner: U.S. Army Air Forces Documentary - WW2
Kamedish's house
Bibliography
Canada. Manitoba. Official Registration of Death. N.p.: n.p., 1941. Print. This
registration tells me when he died and how old he was when he passed away.
Canada. R.C.A.F. Attestation Paper. N.p.: n.p., 1940. Print. This paper gives me
a lot of information on his personal life such as the schools he went to,
mother and fater, hobbies, and what qualifies him to be in the airforce.
Canadian Government. "The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan." Canada Remembers. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2012. <http://www.veterans.gc.ca/ pdf/publications/canada-remembers/SWW_Britcom_e.pdf>. This website gives me information on what John Kamedish must have gone through in his training and how many people were in his shoes.Government of Canada. "Robert Anthony John Peter (Tony) Pitt ." Veterans Affairs
Canada. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2012. <http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/
collections/hrp/hrp_detail/1353#tran>. Describes what Kamedish had to go
through in his training.
Hillmar, Norman, and F.J. Hatch. "British Commonwealth Air Training Plan." The Canadian Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2012. <http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/ british-commonwealth-air-training-plan>. Gives me a prespective on what was going on with regards to what Kamedish was going into and what was going on in regards to the R.C.A.F.
R.C.A.F. Officer. "R.C.A.F. Special Reserve Interview Report." Letter. 5 July 1940. MS. This interview is good for giving me information on what kind of a person Kamedish was.
Schwartz, Bob. "Royal Canadian Air Force - Wireless Operator Air Gunner ."Wing 2 Wing. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 May 2012. <http://www.ww2wings.com/
wings/canada/canadawag.shtml>. There are pictures of badges that
Kamedish got for becoming an air gunner for the R.C.A.F.
Stone, A. C. "Certificate of Medical Examination Kamedish." Letter. 12 Apr. 1940. MS. This certificate tells me his appearance and build of Kamedish and will help me bring his who he was to life.
Wallis, J. "Report on accidental or self-inflicted injuries or immediate death
therefrom." Letter. 9 May 1941. MS. Tells me the details on the accident
that caused Kamedish's death.